Electric sprinkler apparatus.



' PATEN ED-MA '13, 1906..

-J. W. LARISHr 7 ELECTRIC SPRINKLER APPARATUS. 7

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4.1904.

fusible strap or loop UNITE STATES PATENT OEEI E.

JOSEPH W. LARI H, E BOSTON, MA SACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO'CAS AND ELECTRICPROTECTIVE COMPANY, 013 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A

CORPORATION OF' MAINE.

ELECTRIC SPRINKLER APPARATUS.-

Specification ofi Letters Patent.

' Patented March 13, 1906.

Application filed J' 11116 4, 1904. 'Serial No. 211,116.

To all whom it may concern: 1

Be it known that I, J OSEPH W. LARISH, of? Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented. certain new anduseful Improvements in Electric Sprinkler Apparatus,.of which thefollowing is a} specification.

- 1 This invention relates to-automatic sprinkler systems for buildings,andv has. for its 010- 1 ect to provide electrical means for giving analarm or operating some other emergencydevice when the sprinkler-headsleak or when j they become fu y operative.

Of the accompanying'drawings,Figure 1' represents a diagrammatic view ofelectric,

sprinkler-controlling apparatus constructed according to my inventionwith the piping utilized as a return. Fig. 2 represents aside elevationof. one of the s rinkler heads.

Fig. 3 represents a front e evation thereof. Fig. 4- represents ahorizontal section showing a modification in the soluble means for Fig.5 represents a diagrammatic view showing the em loymentof wires as anelectrical return.

he same reference characters indicate th same parts in all thefigures. v

In the drawings, 10 are sprinkleripes equipped with automaticsprinkler-hea' s 11 11, one of which isshown in detail in Figs. 2 I. and3 and includes the ordinary pivoted lever 12, controllingthesprinkler-head valve and' normally held in valve-closingposition by a13. When this strap melts, the lever drops to the rightfromthe positionshown in Fig. 2 andreleases the valve. In the arran ement shown in Figs.1, 2, and 3 the frame 0% the sprinklerehead is arranged to constitute anelectrical'conductor, aportion of which is a contact 14. 15 isaspringcontact normally separatedfrom contact 14 by a piece of thintissue-paper 16, which is sufliciently soluble to permit anelectricalconnection between contacts 14 15, especially when aided bythe conductivity of the water. 17 is adynamo connected: by return-wire18 with the sprinkler-piping andby wire 19 I With one leg of a switch20. "Thisswitch I inthe circuit,

the circuit 24 branching through annunciator dropmagnets 25, the branchwires 26 leading to the spring-contacts '15 of the severalsprinkler-heads.

heads. 11. leak the water will sufliciently dissolvethe tissueaper 16 orwhatever soluble equivalent may be substituted therefor in order toconnect contacts 14 '15 and operate the It is evident that when. any ofthe sprinkler- Fig. 4 shows a modification in which the alarm 23 and theindicator devices 25. This sprinklerehead is equipped with s ring-com,

tacts 27 27, normally held apart y a soluble block 28, which may becomposed of gelatin or a. compound thereof. In this case the return-wire18 goes to one of the contacts 27.

.(See also Fig. 5.) The contacts 27 may also .be connected by the arm 12dropping down into the space between their separated ends. Reverting toFig. 1, there is shown at the left aprotective device 29, whoseconstruction embodies 'a field-magnet 30, having an armature 31,carrying abrush 32, adapted to travel over the contacts of'a rheostaticresistance 33 for the purpose of controlling the amount of currentflowing in a circuit 34, whichcontains translating devices 35, such30ihas a series winding 36and a shunt-winding 37, one terminalof each ofwhich is connectedwithone terminal of the dynamo, the other terminalofthe series winding connecting, through the arm 32, with the lighting asthe lamps in. the building. The magnet circuit 34 and therethrough withthe opposite terminal of the dynamo, while the shunt winding isconnected directly across the light ing-mains. An undue increase ofcurrent in the lighting-circuit will cause the arm 32 to bemoved out andinsert increased resistance thereby protecting said circuit and thetranslating devices from injury. The

series and shunt windings 36 37 steady the movement of the arm.Provision is made for efiecting a short circuit of the lightingcircuit34 and consequent movement of the arm 32 to the extreme of its movementwhen any one of the sprinkler-heads leaks or be comes operative, suchprovision comprising the relay-magnet 38, in whose circuit 39 40 thedynamo 17 and sprinkler-circuit 19 24 26 may be placed by throwing theswitch to the left, such movement cutting out the bell 23. Thearmature-controlled contacts 41 42 of the relay are in circuit aroundthe translating devices 35, whereby these devices are short-circuitedwhen an impulse is sent from any sprinkler-head. At the limit ofresistance-inserting movement of the armature 31 of magnet a bridge-arm43, carried thereby,

' may connect contacts 44 45 and close a circuit 46 47 through the bell23, (or through other alarm or emergency device.) With the switch 20thrown to the right, as shown in Fig. 1, upon the operation of any ofthe sprinkler-circuit closers the circuit will be from the generator 17,through the bell 23, switch 20, wires 22 and 24, the annunciator 25,corresponding to the circuit in which the operated sprinkler is located,and back to the generator through the pipe system and the wire 18. If,however, a sprinkler should be operated with the switch 20 thrown to theleft, the circuit will be the same as before, except that in lieu of thebell 23 and wire 20 there will be included in the circuit the relaycoilof the magnet 38 and the wires 39 and 40. If with the switch thrown tothe left, as shown in Fig. 1, or to the right the contacts 44 and 45should be bridged by the arm 43, upon an excess of current in thelighting-circuit an alarm-circuit will be completed from the generator17, through the bell 27, wires 47 and 46, back to the other side of thegenerator, and thus this alarm-circuit is independent of the position ofthe said switch and is always operative.

I claim 1. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a sprinkler-headcomprising a valve-controllin pivoted lever, fusible means normallyolding the latter in valve-closing position, electric contacts closed bysaid lever in its valve-releasing position, and soluble means normallyholding said contacts apart.

2. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a s rinkling device, acircuit containing a trans ating device and protective mechanism forautomatically limiting the current flowing in said circuit, and meanswhereby the outflow from said sprinkling device actuates said protectivedevice.

3. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a sprinkling device, acircuit containing a translating device, protective means toautomatically limit the current flowing in said circuit, andtemperature-controlled means to actuate said protective means.

4. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a sprinkling device, acircuit containing a translating device, protective means forantomatically limiting the current flowing in said circuit, and meanscontrolled by the sprinkling device for effecting the actuation of saidprotective means.

5. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a sprinkling device, acircuit containing a translating device, means controlled by the currentin said circuit for automatically limiting said current, a relay forshort-circuiting said translating device, and means whereby the outflowfrom said sprinkling device actuates said relay.

6. In a sprinkler system, the combination of a sprinkler-head comprisingelectric contacts, soluble means normall holding said contacts apart, avalve-contro led pivoted 1ever bridging the said contactsin itsvalvereleasing position and fusible means normally holding the leverinits valve-closing position.

7. In a s rinkler system, the combination with a sprin er-head, anelectric circuit, contacts in the said circuit, soluble means normallyholding said contacts apart, a valvecontrolled pivoted lever adapted toclose the circuit when in its valve-releasing position, and fusiblemeans normally holding the lever in its valve-closing position.

8. In a sprinkler system, the combination of sprinkling devices, anelectric circuit comprising branches to the several sprinkling devices,a source of current common to the said branches, annunciators in thesaid branches, a bell branch associated with the annunciator branches,normally opened contacts in the bell branch, a second circuit containintranslating devices, an electrically-actuated switch for controlling thecurrent through the translating devices, and for closing the normallyopen contacts in the bell branch of the first-named circuit, a switch inthe second circuit, and an electromagnet included in circuit with theannunciator branches to actuate the said switch and thereby cause thecontrolling-switch to cut down the current in the second circuit andclose the bell branch of the first circuit.

9. In a sprinkler system, the combination of sprinkling devices, asource of electrical energy, an alarm-circuit from said source to thesprinklers, comprising a plurality of branches, annunciators located inthe said branches, a bell branch associated with the annunciatorbranches, an electromagnet in series with the annunciator branches, aconsumption-circuit from the said source, an electrically-actuatedcontrolling-switch and translating devices therein, a circuit-closer,actuated by the electromagnet, in series with the annunciator branches,in shunt to the translating devices and in series with the ac- "Intestimony whereof I have afliXed my tuating-coils of thecontrolling-switch, consignature in presence of two Witnesses. tactscontrolled by the controlling-switch for closing the bell branch,-andcircuit-complet I JOSEPH LARISH 5 ing means controlled by the sprinklingde. Witnesses:

vices located in the several annunciator A. C. RATIGAN,

branches. R. BULLOCK.

